1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to dense wavelength division multiplexers (DWDM) and in particular to a technique for locking transmission wavelengths of individual lasers of the DWDM.
2. Description of the Related Art
A DWDM is a device for simultaneously transmitting a set of discrete information channels over a single fiber optic transmission line. A conventional fiber optic transmission line is capable of reliably transmitting signals within a bandwidth of 1280 to 1625 nanometers (nm), the xe2x80x9clow lossxe2x80x9d region for silica fiber. Within that overall bandwidth, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has defined various transmission bands and specified certain transmission channel protocols for use within each transmission band. One example of a transmission band is the ITU xe2x80x9cCxe2x80x9d band, which extends 40 nm from 1525 nm to 1565 nm. Within the C band, specific transmission channel protocols of 40, 80, or 160 discrete channels are defined and, for each protocol, the ITU has defined a grid of transmission wavelengths, with each line corresponding to an acceptable transmission wavelength. The protocols have been defined to ensure that all DWDM transmission and reception equipment are fabricated to operate at the same wavelengths. For the 40-channel protocol, the corresponding ITU grid has 40 lines with channel spacing of 0.8 nm; for the 80-channel protocol, the corresponding ITU grid has 80 lines with channel spacing of 0.4 nm; and so forth. Additional protocols have been proposed, including 320 channel and 640 channel protocols. Maximum theoretical transmission frequencies for the various ITU protocols are as follows: 100 GHz for the 40 channel protocol; 50 GHz for the 80 channel protocol; 25 GHz for the 160 channel protocol; 12.5 GHz for the 320 channel protocol; and 6.25 GHz for the 640 channel protocol. Closer channel spacing necessitates a lower modulation rate since channel spacing must be larger than the modulation frequency. High frequency modulation requires suitable optic fibers, as well as appropriate transmission and receiving equipment. Current state-of-the-art DWDMs typically employ a 40 channel ITU protocol but transmit at 2.5 GHz, well below the theoretical maximum. Other exemplary ITU transmission bands are the S- and L-bands.
To simultaneously transmit the set of channels on a fiber optic cable, a conventional DWDM employs a set of the individual distributed feedback (DFB) lasers, with one DFB laser per channel and with the DFB configured to transmit. FIG. 1 illustrates a DWDM 100 having forty individual DFB lasers 102 for transmitting optical signals via a single optic fiber 104. An optical multiplexer 106 couples signals received from the individual DFBs via a set of intermediate optic fibers 107 into output optic fiber 104. Each DFB laser transmits at a different wavelength of the 40-channel ITU C band. This enables forty separate channels of information to be transmitted via the single optical fiber 104 to a de-multiplexer (not shown) provided at the far end of the optical fiber.
To permit the DWDM to transmit forty separate channels simultaneously, each individual DFB must be tuned to a single ITU transmission channel wavelength. A DFB laser can be tuned only within a narrow wavelength band, typically about 2 nm in width. Hence, for the 40-channel protocol of the ITU C band having 0.8 nm transmission line spacing, the typical DFB can only be tuned to one of a few adjacent lines out of the total of 40 lines of the ITU grid. Traditionally each individual DFB laser is manually calibrated at the factory to emit at a corresponding one of the ITU transmission lines. This is achieved by adjusting the laser operating temperature and current to obtain the desired wavelength. The laser is then, in some implementations, locked to the target wavelength by routing the output beam from each DFB laser through a corresponding manually tunable etalon. (The etalons are not shown in FIG. 1.) A manually tunable etalon is an optical device that produces a periodically-varying transmission spectrum as a function of laser wavelength. By tilting the etalon relative to the DFB laser beam path, a transmission peak of the etalon can be made coincident with the target ITU channel. The wavelength of an etalon transmission peak is calibrated to one of the ITU transmission lines by manually adjusting the angle of the etalon while monitoring the wavelength output from the etalon using an optical wavelength analyzer. The angle of the etalon is adjusted until the output wavelength is properly aligned with one of the ITU transmission lines, then the etalon is mounted in place in an attempt to lock the output wavelength of etalon to the selected ITU transmission line. This is a difficult and time-consuming process requiring skilled technicians. Calibration of all forty DFB lasers of a single DWDM can be quite expensive. Mechanical or thermal drift of the etalon over time often moves the transmission peak away from the target ITU channel, which requires recalibration.
Once the DFB lasers of a single DWDM are properly aligned with the ITU grid, the DWDM may then be used for transmitting signals over a fiber optic line, such as for transmitting digital data over computer networks or for transmitting television signals from a television network to one of its affiliates. A single DWDM must be provided for use with each fiber optic line employed for DWDM transmissions and hence a single customer installation, such as a television broadcast center, may require many, many DWDMs. If one of the DFB lasers within a DWDM drifts from its corresponding ITU transmission line or otherwise malfunctions, the entire DWDM typically needs to be replaced to permit the malfunctioning DWDM to be returned to the factory to be re-calibrated or otherwise fixed. As a result, the cost of maintaining a set of DWDMs is often substantial. To help remedy this problem, some DWDMs are provided with an additional widely tunable laser (WTL), which can be tuned separately to any one of the ITU grid lines. Hence, if one of the DFB lasers malfunctions, the single WTL can be tuned to the corresponding transmission wavelength of the DFB to thereby permit the DWDM to continue to operate. Additional WTLs can be supplied with a DWDM to accommodate the failure of two or more DFB channels, and such xe2x80x9csparingxe2x80x9d is a major advantage a WTL over a DFB. However, the WTL cannot simply and accurately be tuned to any target ITU channel at a customer installation and must be calibrated at the factory for operation at a specific channel.
Another problem associated with employing DFB lasers within DWDMs is that, because each DFB laser can only be tuned within a narrow range of about 2 nm, each DFB laser can only be calibrated to one of a few adjacent ITU transmission wavelength lines. It is sometimes desirable to configure the DWDM to use many lasers for transmitting at a single ITU transmission line to provide more bandwidth on that channel. When using DFB lasers, no more than two or three of the lasers can be calibrated to a single ITU transmission line. Hence, in some DWDMs, WTLs are used exclusively instead of DFB lasers, thus permitting any of the lasers to be manually calibrated at the customers installation to transmit on any of the ITU transmission lines. Although the use of WTLs remedies many of the problems associated with using DFB lasers, WTLs are difficult and expensive to fabricate and initially calibrate, and are susceptible to wavelength drift requiring frequent recalibration at the customers installation by trained technicians and hence necessitating high overall installation and maintenance costs.
Thus, whether using DFB lasers or WTLs within a DWDM, significant problems arising in achieving and maintaining proper wavelength calibration of the lasers to permit reliable operation of the DWDM. Accordingly, there was a need to provide an efficient method and system for calibrating transmission lasers within a DWDM and it was to that end that the invention of the parent application was primarily directed. Briefly, the parent patent application involved techniques for calibrating a transmission WTL of a DWDM using an etalon and a gas cell having acetylene, hydrogen cyanide or carbon dioxide. Initially, the absolute transmission wavelengths of the WTL are calibrated by routing an output beam from the WTL through the etalon and through the gas cell while varying tuning parameters of the WTL to thereby generate an etalon spectrum and a gas absorption spectrum both as functions of the tuning parameters. The etalon and gas absorption spectra are compared, along with input reference information specifying gas absorption as a function of absolute wavelength, to determine the absolute transmission wavelength for the WTL as a function of the tuning parameters. The WTL is then tuned to align the transmission wavelength of the WTL to an ITU transmission grid line. By tuning the output wavelength of the WTL using an etalon in combination with a gas absorption cell, the WTL can be quickly, easily and precisely set to a selected ITU transmission grid line at a customer installation. The tuning process can be periodically repeated to maintain precise tuning of the WTL despite possible temperature or mechanical drift of the various components. In one implementation, a hand-held wavelength mapper is provided for manually connecting to a WTL to tune the WTL to a selected ITU transmission gridline. In another implementation, the wavelength mapper is permanently attached to the WTL along with a wavelength locker to lock the WTL to an ITU transmission gridline.
Insofar as wavelength locking is concerned, the parent application describes a wavelength locker employing a temperature-controlled etalon. After the aforementioned wavelength mapping steps are performed to determine the absolute wavelength of the laser as a function of the laser tuning parameters, tuning parameters are applied to the laser to tune the laser to a selected transmission wavelength, such as an ITU channel wavelength. A temperature offset is applied to the etalon of the wavelength locker to vary the wavelengths of the transmission peaks of the etalon until one of the transmission peaks is precisely aligned with the selected wavelength. Any drift of the laser from the etalon transmission peak is detected and the tuning parameters applied to the laser are automatically adjusted to compensate for the drift. The temperature of the etalon is precisely maintained so that the etalon transmission peak does not drift from the selected wavelength. In this manner, the main output beam of the laser remains locked on the absolute wavelength of the selected transmission channel despite possible variations in the output characteristics of the laser. Periodically, the system can be recalibrated using the known absolute wavelengths of the gas absorption chamber to ensure that the transmission peak of the etalon has not drifted from the absolute wavelength of the selected transmission channel.
Although the parent application describes highly useful techniques for mapping the transmission wavelengths of lasers within a DWDM and for locking the transmission wavelengths to ITU grid lines, room for further improvement remains, particularly insofar as the design and fabrication of the wavelength locker is concerned. For practical applications, the wavelength locker should be highly miniaturized and configured so as to consume relatively little power. The wavelength locker also should be sufficiently durable to operate reliably over a ten- or twenty-year lifetime. Ideally, the wavelength locker should be designed so as to work in combination with any of a wide variety of ITU transmission protocols and fiber optic transmission rates, both existing and proposed. Perhaps most importantly, the wavelength locker should be designed so as to be sufficiently inexpensive for practical use. Difficulties arise in each of these areas.
Each WTL for use in a DWDM is typically provided in a miniature xe2x80x9cbutterflyxe2x80x9d package for mounting to a circuit board also containing microcontrollers and other components. The circuit boards are mounted in a parallel array within the DWDM with, typically, one board per ITU channel. Hence, a forty ITU channel DWDM employs forty circuit boards; an eighty ITU channel DWDM employs eighty circuit boards. Current state-of-the-art WTLs typically draw about ten watts of power, thus requiring 400 watts of power or more for the a forty channel DWDM and correspondingly more power for 80 or 160 channel DWDMs. A significant portion of the power is consumed by thermoelectric (TE) coolers provided for controlling the temperature of the semiconductor laser of the WTL. With the WTLs already consuming considerable power, it is particularly important that the wavelength locker be configured so as to minimize power consumption, particularly the temperature-controlled etalon. Minimizing power consumption, however, typically requires that the etalon be configured to provide numerous closely-spaced transmission peaks (i.e. to have a narrow free spectral range) such that relatively little heating or cooling is required to expand or contract the etalon or change its index of refraction sufficiently enough to align one of the transmission lines of the etalon with a selected ITU grid line. Using numerous closely spaced peaks, however, increases the risk that the wavelength locker will lock the transmission wavelength of the WTL to the wrong wavelength. Also, to provide numerous closely-spaced transmission peaks, the etalon typically must be configured to have a very short optical axis, thereby making it more difficult to fabricate and align.
Moreover, difficulties arise in adequately insulating the temperature-controlled etalon so as to minimize power loss and to ensure a minimal temperature gradient within the etalon. Any significant temperature gradient within the etalon tends to degrade the finesse of the etalon (i.e. the sharpness of the individual etalon lines) thus making it difficult to achieve precise wavelength locking. Likewise, any slight misalignment of the etalon or any slight imprecision in reflection coatings of the etalon reduces the degree of finesses. Lack of adequate insulation, of course, also increases power consumption and generates a greater amount of waste heat, which may affect the ability of the TE cooler of the laser to efficiently control the temperature of the laser, particularly if the etalon is mounted closely adjacent to the laser within the butterfly package. Typically, manufacturing protocols for DWDMs specify that the DWDM must operate at 70 degrees Celsius or less, thus putting further limitations on the design of the temperature-controlled etalon. It is difficult, therefore, to provide a temperature-controlled etalon and other wavelength locker, which achieves the requisite degree of finesse for precise wavelength locking while also minimizing power consumption, even for use with just one ITU channel protocol. Ideally, however, the temperature-controlled etalon and other components of the wavelength locker should be configured to work with any of a variety of ITU channel protocols, such as 40 to 640 channels, and with any of a variety of transmission frequencies, such as from 2.5 GHz to 100 GHz. Also, ideally, the wavelength locker is sufficiently miniaturized to mount inside the butterfly package of the WTL to minimize overall circuit board space.
For all of the foregoing reasons, it would highly desirable to provide improved methods and systems for implementing a wavelength locker for use in locking the transmission wavelength of a laser of a DWDM, which is highly miniaturized, achieves low implementation costs and operating costs, consumes relatively little power, works in combination with any of a wide variety of ITU transmission protocols, and is sufficiently durable to reliably operate for ten to twenty years. The invention of the present application is directed to providing just such a wavelength locker.
A system and method is provided for locking a laser to a transmission wavelength using a tunable etalon. In accordance with the system, a laser wavelength detector detects a transmission wavelength of the output beam of the laser. An etalon splits a portion of the output beam of the laser into a series of transmission lines and an etalon wavelength detector detects the etalon transmission lines. A control unit sets the transmission wavelength of the output beam of the laser to a selected wavelength and also tunes the etalon to align a selected one of the etalon transmission lines to the selected wavelength. The control unit thereafter detects any drift of the transmission wavelength of the laser from the selected etalon transmission line and adjusts the laser to compensate for any drift such that the output beam of the laser is locked to the selected transmission wavelength so long as the selected etalon transmission line remains at the selected wavelength.
In an exemplary embodiment, the wavelength locker is mounted to a WTL circuit card for use in a DWDM for transmitting signals via ITU protocols. The etalon of the wavelength locker is a miniature temperature-controlled silicon etalon having an optical axis length of about 5.36 mm and a cross-section of about 3 mm by 3 mm. The etalon is configured to have finesse of about 20 and provide a free spectral range of about 8 GHz. With these parameters, the system can lock the wavelength of the laser to within a precision of about xc2x10.2 GHz and hence is ideal for use with most ITU transmission protocols, such as C-band protocols from 40 channels up to 2500 channels or more, and for use with most transmission rates, such as rates from 2.5 GHz to 100 GHz. Two resistive heating elements are deposited on opposing sides of the etalon for use in heating the etalon. The control unit varies the wavelengths of the transmission peaks of the etalon by selectively routing current through the heating strips to vary the temperature of the etalon within the range of about 70 to 75 degrees C. to thereby selectively vary the optical length of the etalon by an amount sufficient to vary the wavelengths by up to xc2xd FSR which in this example is equivalent to 4 GhZ=0.032 nm. Once a transmission line of the etalon has been aligned with the selected ITU line, the temperature of the etalon is precisely maintained so that the etalon transmission peak does not drift from the selected wavelength. Given the small size of the etalon, relatively little power is required to heat the etalon and to vary the transmission peaks of the etalon through the range of wavelengths. Moreover, by operating the etalon in the range of 70 to 75 degrees C., no TE cooling unit is required. Rather, ambient cooling is sufficient to reduce the temperature of the etalon as needed. Hence, significant power savings are achieved over a system requiring a TE cooler or other cooling means for cooling the etalon.
The miniature etalon is sufficiently small to permit mounting within the butterfly package of the laser. Yet the etalon is not so small as to make fabrication and alignment of the etalon difficult, or to require the length of the etalon to be sufficiently short so that the spacing between transmission fringes is too great for efficient use, particularly with ITU protocols having widely-spaced grid lines. As noted above, the wider apart the fringes of the etalon, the more power is required to vary the wavelengths of the fringes sufficiently to permit alignment with a selected ITU transmission channel. If not mounted within the butterfly package, the etalon is preferably enclosed in a separate sealed chamber filled with air, krypton gas or acetylene. By sealing the etalon in either the butterfly package or within a separate chamber, heat losses due to circulating air are eliminated. The etalon is mounted to an interior of the butterfly package or separate chamber using an insulating material having a bonding material including a silicone, epoxy or polyimide binder and a high thermal resistance material in the form of sieved particles such as glass microspheres. The insulating material further reduces heat losses from the etalon so that overall power consumption can be further reduced while also ensuring a substantially uniform temperature throughout the etalon, so that the finesse and FSR of the etalon is not degraded. The reduction of heat loss from the etalon not only permits lower operating power but also helps prevent changes in ambient temperature in the vicinity of the etalon, which might otherwise affect the operation of other components, such as the efficiency of a TE cooler mounted to the laser.
Also in the exemplary embodiment, the system includes wavelength-mapping components for initially calibrating the transmission wavelengths of the laser and the etalon. The wavelength-mapping components include a gas absorption chamber, an optical element for routing a portion of the output beam from the laser through the gas absorption chamber to generate gas absorption spectrum, and a detector for detecting the gas absorption transmission spectrum. A wavelength-mapping control unit is provided for tuning the laser through a range of tuning parameters while the output beam from the laser is routed through the etalon and through the gas cell to produce an etalon transmission spectrum as a function of the laser tuning parameters and to produce a gas absorption spectrum as a function of the laser tuning parameters. An absolute transmission wavelength determination unit is provided for comparing the detected etalon transmission spectrum with the detected gas absorption spectrum to determine the absolute transmission wavelength of the laser as a function of the laser tuning parameters. In one specific embodiment, the miniature etalon is mounted within a gas absorption cell containing acetylene, thus eliminating the need for a separate chamber for the etalon.